Simpson well in lee county
A photo of the Simpson well in Lee County, also now abandoned. Butler Well #3 is in the same county, and is abandoned, at least for now.
Developers Want to Extract Gas for an AI Data Center in Lee County: Why Community Members are Concerned
Deep River Data wants to power an AI data center with gas from Butler Well #3 in Lee County. A North Carolina journalist, Lisa Sorg, reported on this plan in November, 2025: A Company Eyes What Would Be North Carolina’s First Commercial Natural Gas Well. Butler Well #3 is located near the Lee-Chatham county line, south of U.S. Highway 421, close to Cumnock & Sanford, NC. It is unlikely this well will produce any usable amount of gas without hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”). Fracking has never been used in North Carolina.
Deep River Data’s goal is to open up the gas well, and use the methane gas extracted on-site to power an AI data center. Right now, they are working on submitting an application to the NC Oil & Gas Commission, in order to do that.
The risk is real. This project would pose serious threats to our drinking water wells, the Deep River, and our children’s health. The air pollution from gas drilling, fracking, refining that gas, and burning it 24/7 in gas generators to power a data center would harm local residents’ health.
UPDATE: Sanford is holding a public hearing on a set of rules for data centers… and they could VOTE to approve these rules on Tuesday 4/21. Sanford City residents shouldn’t be rushed into a set of rules, that haven’t had enough community input. The city and county have the power to hit the pause button with a moratorium, and have a thoughtful transparent process with citizen input and more time for regulations to develop…. but that isn’t what is currently happening.
Ask the Lee County Commissioners & Sanford for a Moratorium on Data Centers & Fracking!
- Sign the petition!: Lee County & Sanford: Pass a Moratorium on Fracking & Data Centers
- Come to the April 21 Sanford City Council Hearing on Data Center Rules – Sanford is holding a public hearing on a set of rules for data centers… and they could VOTE to approve these rules the same night. Click here for talking points!
- One big reason to pass a moratorium right now, is that there is bipartisan support for removing NC’s data center tax exemption. Cities or counties could miss out on revenue on projects that start before that sale tax exemption is fixed! That is money our local government should get to offset the cost of data centers on our communities. A moratorium gives Sanford time to make sure that any data center that comes… is paying its fair share in taxes!
- Join your neighbors in calling on the city & county to pass a moratorium on data centers! THERE COULD BE A VOTE ON THE DATA CENTER RULES…. (without a fracking moratorium)… THIS NIGHT. IF THERE WERE ONE MEETING TO GO TO… IT IS THIS ONE!!!
- Speaker sign up is from 5-5:50pm (here are talking points for your comment!)
- Hearing is at 6pm.
- The night before, April 20 at 6pm at the Dennis Wicker Civic Center (1801 Nash St. Sanford), is the Lee County Commissioners Meeting. Come and ask them, “where is the moratorium on data centers and fracking you voted to draft in March?” We still haven’t seen it.
- Since November, Deep River Data continues to work on their application. Their continued communication with the state geologist was confirmed at the February 3 NC Oil & Gas Commission meeting
- The county doesn’t need to wait for the application to come in to act. The best time to protect Lee County residents from fracking, drilling, and a data center, is now.
- You can always email your comments to the county commissioners or Sanford City Council
Upcoming Events
- April 20 at 6pm at the Dennis Wicker Civic Center (1801 Nash St. Sanford), is the Lee County Commissioners Meeting. Come and ask them, “where is the moratorium on data centers and fracking you voted to draft in March?” We still haven’t seen it.
- April 21 Sanford City Council Hearing on Data Center Rules – 5pm-225 E. Weatherspoon Street, Sanford. (Sign up to speak 5-5:50pm, hearing at 6pm).
- Sanford is holding a public hearing on a set of rules for data centers… and they could VOTE to approve these rules the same night. If there is one meeting to come to IT IS THIS ONE! Ask for a moratorium, instead of rules written without a real chance for public input or transparency. RSVP here. Share the Facebook event or on Instagram. Remember that there is still construction on Weatherspoon St, so give yourself time for the detour.
Spread the Word!
Share information on social media:
- Follow us on Facebook for events you can share
- Share the Facebook event for the April 21 hearing!
- Instagram: follow us @cleanwaternc for updates!
- Share the Instagram post for the April 21 hearing!
- Share the petition: Lee County & Sanford: Pass a Moratorium on Data Centers & Fracking
Resources to educate neighbors:
- NEW: Talking Points for Sanford City Council Data Center Public Hearing & Vote on 4/21
- Flyer with fracking talking points: Lee County No Fracking Data Center Talking Points
- New Report: Build Before the Bubble Bursts: Understanding the Business Model Behind the Data Center Boom in North Carolina
- Article that broke this story: A Company Eyes What Would Be North Carolina’s First Commercial Natural Gas Well.
- Learn how to use Lee County’s interactive map to see what data they have on mineral rights for your property (it may not be up to date!)
Data Center Concerns
Deep River Data plans to construct a data center to power AI facilities that house servers for data storage and application operation.
What is Artificial Intelligence (AI)? AI performs complex tasks normally handled by humans.
- Data centers employ very few people and can even take jobs away.
- For example, HM Tech, the company that owns Deep River Data, has a data center in Graham, NC in Alamance County. This data center uses 11 megawatts of power and the warehouses for its servers cover 60,000 square feet. It only employs 10 people.
- Data center investments are risky. Experts are starting to warn of an AI bubble, similar to the dot com crash in the 2000s, or the 2008 crash of the housing market. It seems like the bubble is still inflating, and developers are still proposing data centers anywhere they can . There is a risk of overbuilding, and data centers being abandoned when the bubble pops or new, more efficient technology is adopted. Learn more from our new report: Build Before the Bubble Bursts: Understanding the Business Model Behind the Data Center Center Boom in NC
- They consume tons of energy and strain local water supplies.
- Backup generators release harmful chemicals into the air that can harm heart and lung health..
- Data centers are LOUD, run 24/7, and range from 55-85 decibels (vacuum cleaner or lawn mower).
- High electric bills. Rising electricity costs are linked to new infrastructure needed for AI data centers, contributing to electricity bills increasing 2x faster than inflation.
Why is Lee County an even riskier place to frack or drill?
- The underground gas in Lee County is very close to the groundwater. The gas well in question is about 2,700 feet deep. The shale formations fracked in Pennsylvania are much deeper. They range from 8.500 feet- to over 12,000 feet below the ground.
- The groundwater in Lee County is deep – up to 1,000 feet. Fractures are known to travel up to 2,000 feet – greater than the distance between the gas and the groundwater in Lee County.
- The cracks in this shale, caused by fracking, are large enough to connect the gas & contaminate our groundwater.
About Fracking & Drilling
What is fracking? Fracking drills deep underground vertically and then horizontally. Toxic chemicals mixed with water, used at high pressures to crack underground shale, frees the gas trapped within.
- Drilling and fracking can release harmful chemicals into the air affecting health, linked to early death, pregnancy issues, cancer, and respiratory and heart problems.
- Conventional drilling can potentially contaminate groundwater with methane and pollutants if it cracks underground rock.
- Methane can dissolve harmful metals like arsenic and iron, making well water unsafe to drink.
- Fracking can pollute rivers and other water bodies on the surface. Flowback water or spills of chemicals can get into surface water (like the Deep River!)
- The injection of wastewater underground has been linked to induced seismic activity, including micro-earthquakes.
- Children living near fracking wells are more likely to get certain cancers like leukemia & lymphoma.
